ICC World Cup 2023: Australia Issue Warning With 3-0 Whitewash Of South Africa in T20I Series

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Record champions Australia issued a warning to their rivals ahead of the ICC World Cup 2023 with a 3-0 whitewash of South Africa despite missing some key members of the white-ball team.

Pat Cummins, Steve Smith, David Warner, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood were among some key players to miss the recently concluded series, but stand-in skipper Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head showcased imense form to power Australia past Proteas in their own backyard.

The five-time World Cup champions, who had already bagged the series 2-0, confirmed the series sweep with yet another dominant performance on Sunday (September 3) as they cruised to a five-wicket victory on the back of a career-best T20I innings of 91 from opener Head.

Head was adjudged Player of the Match after he smashed eight fours and six sixes during an entertaining 48-ball stay, as Australia chased down South Africa's decent total of 190/8 with more than two overs remaining.

Head was last month named in Australia's preliminary 18-member World Cup squad for this year's 50-over show-piece tournament, and the left-hander showed he could play a big part at the event with his maiden T20I half-century against the Proteas.

"It's nice to be back and contributing," Head said. "There's been limited opportunities in this format for a while. I'd been struggling a little bit to find my tempo and how I wanted to go about it at the top."

Skipper Marsh was named Player of the Series for his 186 runs and could also play a big role in his side's World Cup push in India if he can replicate the hard-hitting form he showed against South Africa.

The series was Marsh's first as Australia's new T20I captain and the 31-year-old was thrilled his side could ease to a comfortable series triumph.

"I'm really proud of a pretty young group coming over here and winning the series 3-0," Marsh said. "We had a great team effort. We prepared really well, and we took the game on. We had a bit of luck at times, but as a team we had the mentality of being really positive."

Although the format is different, several players grabbed their opportunity with some big names missing as Sean Abbott, Spencer Johnson and Nathan Ellis did well with ball along with spinner Tanveer Sangha, while Head and Marsh starred with the bat.

Now, we take a look at the Australia players' who are part of the ICC World Cup 2023 provisional squad's performance in the three-match T20I series. Australia won the first T20I by 111 runs followed by an 8-wicket in the second T20I before sealing the series with a 5-wicket win.

How Australia's Key Players Performed in T20I series vs South Africa?

Travis Head: The opener scored 115 runs in 3 innings at an average of 38.33 and a strike rate of 169.11. His knocks included one fifty, 12 fours and 7 sixes. He is very likely to open the batting at the World Cup with either David Warner or Marsh.

Mitch Marsh: The skipper stepped up big time and is very likely to be an immediate pick at the World Cup due to his form this year. In the SA T20I series, Marsh scored 186 runs in 3 innings at an average of 186.00 and a strike rate of 186.00. His knocks included 2 fifties, 24 fours and 8 sixes.

Sean Abbott: The pacer bagged 8 wickets in 3 matches, conceding 70 runs in 10 overs and bowling at an economy rate of 7.00. He is part of the provisional squad and although the conditions may be different, he has made a good case to remain in the 15 as the fourth pace bowler.

Tanveer Sangha: The rookie spinner has done well in his limited opportunity, picking five wickets in 2 matches with an economy of 8.75. Part of the provisional squad, Sangha has made a good case to be included as the third spinning option along with Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar.

Marcus Stoinis: The all-rounder did not get much opportunity with the bat, but delivered with the ball, taking five wickets at an economy rate of 8.14 in 7 overs across two innings. In the two innings, he got to bat, he scored 43 runs with a top score of an unbeaten 37.

The Australian white-ball contingent will look to replicate their form in the 50-over series, which could be pivotal in their preparations for the World Cup before they tour to India for another three-match series.